New Destiny: Rise of Hope
by Kelly of the midnight dawn
Summary: Palpatine has risen to power but without the replacement apprentice he had hoped for. Can Anakin, his family, the Alliance and the Jedi Remnant save the galaxy? Rated T for safety. More pairings than can be listed here. Please review!
1. Chapter 1: The Best Laid Plans

**New Destiny: Rise of Hope**

**Chapter 1: The Best Laid Plans**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Star Wars or any of its characters. I barely own the plot of this story as in mirrors in some ways the plot of the first movie only with a few changes. I do own the original Skywalker children and a few other characters that you will see.**

**A/N: There have been some major changes for the better in the galaxy far, far away. But one thing hasn't changed; Palpatine has still managed to rise to power even with the best efforts of our heroes to stop him. Can the Rebel Alliance along with Anakin Skywalker's Jedi Remnant save the galaxy from Palpatine's tyranny?**

"Nice try Galen," Luke Skywalker laughed as he parried his opponent's attack.

Galen Marek, his face dripping with sweat from the heat provided by Tatooine's twin suns more than the exertion of energy he was putting into the practice match, returned his sparring partner's wide smile "I'll get you for sure this time Luke," he promised.

In spite of Galen's confidence it wasn't more than another minute before Luke had disarmed his friend and the wooden sword that Galen had been using snapped in half "I got you again!" Luke decreed as he jumped in the air.

Galen fixed his compatriot with a half stern look "You know what Master Skywalker would say about that," he remarked, trying to keep the smile out of his voice "That is not the behavior of a true Jedi."

Luke threw his head back and laughed "I've seen Dad relish a victory like that once or twice."

"Then perhaps it was me he was thinking of," a new voice echoed through the courtyard and both young men turned to see Obi-Wan Kenobi enter.

Luke and Galen cheerfully waved before rushing to greet their friend and mentor. It was Luke who spoke first "Have you heard any news from Leia or Mara?" he asked.

Galen piped in with a question of his own "Has the Alliance heard from Juno yet?"

"No to both of those questions, I'm afraid," Obi-Wan shook his head sadly. Of course Luke would be desperately worried about his sister and his dear friend. Obi-Wan was worried himself. It was a dangerous assignment that the two young women had taken on, attempting to gather information about support for the Alliance in the Imperial Senate.

Captain Juno Eclipse was another matter entirely. Galen had run into her, quite accidentally, shortly before he and Luke had come to stay on Tatooine. He had been her prisoner for nearly two weeks while she attempted to come to some decision of what to do with him. As for the details of what happened to make Juno release him, Galen had never been quite clear on them. But he assured the other members of the Jedi Remnant that she could be trusted and had been waiting eagerly for news that she had made contact and officially defected from the Empire.

"Boys, boys, boys," Mina Kenobi, a slender twenty one year old who embodied the most pleasing physical characteristics of her mother, Siri Tachi, and her father, Obi-Wan, walked into the courtyard "Leia and Mara can take care of themselves. As for that Imp pilot you keep going on about," she huffed at Galen before noticing the wooden swords lying on the ground "Who won?" she asked, only half interested.

Galen half shrugged as he gestured in Luke's direction. "'Imp' pilot Mina?" he asked in a clearly agitated tone "You've been spending too much time in Anchorhead listening to Biggs Darklighter."

Mina placed her hands on her hips "You know very well Galen that Biggs has been gone for the past three months fighting for the Alliance and I can't wait until I get the chance to join him. I'm sick of waiting around on this rock." She turned and left the courtyard in a huff.

Obi-Wan sighed "I should have let her join her mother when she had the chance to go a few weeks ago," he lamented "Four Jedi aren't required to watch over your uncle, aunt and grandmother."

"I believe I'm being spoken of," Shmi Skywalker popper her head out from the main building and smiled "Why Obi-Wan, what a pleasure it is to see you today."

Of course Shmi saw Obi-Wan and Mina practically every day and had for the past six months. The excuse to watch over Shmi, Owen and Beru was only a minor part of Anakin's overall strategy. The Jedi Remnant was growing in the Force as the children grew older and their skills increased. Tatooine was far enough out of the way that hopefully a few Force sensitive presences would go unnoticed long enough for Leia and Mara to complete their mission.

Anakin had successfully fooled the Emperor into thinking that he and Padmé, along with their unborn child, had been dead for the past nineteen years. He wasn't ready to tip his hand to Palpatine just yet. The longer that Palpatine believed that Anakin was dead the better chance the Alliance had of success.

"Oh Luke," Shim said, turning to her grandson "Owen said that he wants to go pick up a couple of new droids tomorrow. Will you go with him? I don't want him spending money on any duds like he did last time."

"Sure grandma," Luke agreed.

Shmi turned back to Obi-Wan "Why don't you and Mina join us for some afternoon refreshment?" she offered politely.

Mina suddenly appeared in the courtyard once again "Did someone say refreshment?"

Luke and Galen couldn't help laughing.

XXX

"We know we can count on the support of all nonhuman-controlled worlds," Leia said as she rechecked the information on her datapad while she sat beside Mara in the copilot's seat of the ship that her unofficial Godfather, Bail Organa had loaned them for their business "And it seems that there are factions on Corulag and Commenor. Not to mention Naboo, Aunt Sola said that she's working on convincing Queen Kylantha to supply the Alliance with a safe haven if needed."

"Shh," Mara cut in sharply, grabbing Leia by her left bicep and squeezing hard as she looked back into the rest of the ship beyond the cockpit. "You don't want someone to hear you admitting that Sola Naberrie is your aunt," she warned in a harsh whisper "Bail Organa is the only one who knows who we really are."

Leia nodded and continued looking through the datapad "And we can count on Tatooine of course."

"Come to think of it," Mara said, taking the datapad from her and stowing it in a secret compartment beneath the piloting console "Best not to read those planet names out loud. You never know who could be an Imperial Spy."

Leia threw her head back and laughed lightly "You're too paranoid," she told Mara "Our mission's nearly complete. What could possibly go wrong?"

"I really wish you hadn't said that," Mara murmured. They had dropped out of hyperspace at the correct place and nothing seemed out of place accept that the comm. suddenly came alive with a shouting, garbled distress signal.

"Its broadcasting on an Alliance frequency," Leia reached forward and pushed the switch on the comm. before Mara could stop her "Alliance ship, this is Leia Skywalker aboard the Alderaanian ship _Tantive IV_, how may we assist you?"

There was silence "Tantive IV," a voice shouted over the dim of others who were clearly in panic "Prepare to receive transmission. Make sure that this information reaches Bail Organa on Alderaan."

Leia barely had time to respond when a large data transmission began coming through. No sooner had it finished sending than the comm. went dead. "Alliance ship!" Leia screamed into the comm. "This is Tantive IV! Please respond!" nothing but static came through.

Mara was looking ahead through the viewport in utter shock. Leia hadn't bothered to look up but now she did. She saw the debris field that was all that was left of the unidentified Alliance ship. But that hadn't been what had Mara so stunned into silence. Coming through the debris field straight at them was the _Executor_, the personal ship of Darth Tyranus.

"Mara, power up the hyperdrive," Leia commanded her friend in a wavering voice.

"Don't you think I've tried that?" the redhead retorted in a tone that was half bitter and half fear "They've got a gravity well projector active. Sublight engines only."

Leia could tell that they would soon be overtaken by the Super Star Destroyer. Whatever the data transmission had been, it was important to the Empire to keep it out of Alliance hands, which meant that it was important for her to make sure that it reached those very hands. She left Mara with barely more than a reassuring squeeze of her friend's shoulder before retrieving her datapad and running to where Artoo and Threepio were.

They were just on the edge of the Tatoo system and if the Force was with them just a little longer they might make it to Tatooine just in time to make sure that the plans were no longer aboard when Tyranus arrived.

On her way to the compartment where the droids were she glanced briefly at the plans. They were for a battlestation and from the looks of it, a particularly nasty one. This was definitely something that the Alliance needed to know about. She found Artoo just as Mara's voice came over the internal comm. "Gunners to your stations. We've got a fight on our hands."

XXX

Luke was staring up through his electo-binoculars. He could feel Mara and Leia's presence up there. Tension and anxiety that had been building in his gut for months now was finally beginning to release itself. They were alright and they were coming to the rendezvous point. In a split second though his gut tied back into multiple knots.

He had found the source of the familiar presences. It was a ship, a decent sized ship, Corellian make, he supposed. And it was firing lasers at a much larger target. He increased magnification on the electro-binoculars and gaped at the name on the larger ship's bow "No," he whispered to himself.

_Leia,_ he called to his sister through the Force. She wasn't as strong in the Force as he but when he called to her she could hear him and sometimes was able to respond. Either because of the great distance that separated the siblings or because of what Leia seemed to be focusing all of her attention on at that moment, there was no reply.

Luke decided to try a different approach. _Mara,_ he called out to the redhead that he was almost sure was piloting the all but doomed ship

_Uh, can't talk right now!_ her voice shouted in his head as aggravated as he could ever remember her sounding, a fact which almost made him smile _A little bit busy trying not to die!_

_Mara, it's him,_ Luke told her.

_I know that,_ she snapped back at him.

_You can't fight him, not just the two of you,_ his heart was sinking as he thought about what would happen to his sister and friend if they were captured.

Mara seemed focused on something else for a few moments, something other than her conversation with Luke or piloting the ship. When she finally responded, her tone sounded exactly the way Luke felt. _We won't fight him, don't worry. We're being boarded now. We're gonna give ourselves up and hope for the best._

_Mara!_ Luke shouted.

_Settle down Farmboy,_ she teased him with the name she'd used since the plan to send him and Galen to Tatooine had been announced. _Expect a package from Leia._

Luke was about to ask what the package was when a heavy darkness clamped down on his link to Mara. He could still feel hers and Leia's presences in the Force but it was like a thick fog was keeping him from reaching out to them. He knew that Tyranus had them.

XXX

Anakin and Padmé were on the Alliance's latest base with their other three children and other members of the Jedi Remnant. Caden, their second born son, who had only recently turned eighteen, was sparring with Yurie. The two teenagers danced around the floor of the expansive room in the Massassi Temple while onlookers gaped in appreciation of their skills, even if they were only using wooden swords instead of lightsabers. Anakin smiled in approval. He knew that almost all the new generation of Jedi found the wooden swords to be tedious but he had laid down the rule about this long ago. Real lightsabers were saved for special matches with Masters and proper supervision.

Padmé vacillated between watching Caden and Yurie duel and reprimanding Zayn, their youngest child who was trying with little success to slice his way into the Alliance computer system and assign himself to one of the starfighter squadrons. Zayn, who unlike Leia, had no abilities in the Force whatsoever, had wanted to be a pilot ever since Anakin could remember, but then again, so had Luke and so had Caden and Yurie.

Leia of course, was her mother's daughter and had been interested in politics and affecting change in the galaxy that way since she'd been knee high to an Ewok. Leia showed potential in the Force, great potential but would not agree to training. Anakin was sure that if she would allow him to give her just a few lessons that she would make an amazing Jedi Knight one day. But Padmé had reminded him that it was not his decision which path their daughter took in life.

Suddenly Anakin felt something that unsettled him. He felt the surges of emotion from his two oldest children. Luke was downright horrified and feeling helpless. Anakin tried to reach out to his son to reassure him but he was stopped by the fear and urgency that pulsed through the Force from Leia. He focused on that fear and tried to determine what the source of it was. In his mind's eye a large hulking ship's hull appeared. The name on the side read _Executor_. He cursed under his breath before noticing that Padmé, his other children, the rest of the Jedi Remnant and most of the Alliance members assembled in the room were staring at him.

"Anakin?" Padmé was tense as she spoke "What is it?"

Anakin spoke one word but that word carried so much meaning for him and Padmé; though the being who belonged to that name hadn't answered to it in many years "Dooku."

**A/N: Well, that's the first chapter. Let me know what you think. I tried writing a story like this once before but I was missing a few key components. One was that I tried too hard to explain everything that happened between ROTS and ANH in too much detail so I've decided to start off with my version of ANH and explain things that happened in the past as they come up. Another key was that I was relying too much on OCs. With a better understanding that I feel I have gathered for the characters I feel that I won't need to rely too heavily on OCs this time. The last component and perhaps the most important one is Galen Marek.**


	2. Chapter 2: Package from the Stars

**New Destiny: Rise of Hope**

**Chapter 2: Package from the Stars**

**A/N: Thank you so much to the people who have reviewed so far. Now I present to you, chapter two. I have done my best to prevent grammatical and spelling errors. I hope I have succeeded.**

Anakin paced uneasily in his and Padmé's room in the ancient Massassi temple "I should have killed him when I had the chance," he said regretfully but with a distinct touch of anger to his words.

Padmé stood and placed a hand on his shoulder "You know that's not true. If you had given into anger and killed him you would have started down the road to becoming his replacement, just like Master Yoda said."

Anakin shook his head and sighed "I know…" he through his head back and growled with frustration before throwing himself down on the bed that the two shared. "I feel so helpless Padmé," he confessed to his wife "I haven't felt this way in a long time."

Padmé sat beside her husband and rested a hand on his back "We just have to have faith in Leia and Mara's ability to take care of themselves," though she sounded confident, inside Padmé was an emotional wreck, just barely being held together by the presence of her husband and of her other children. She knew she had to remain strong and was drawing on everything she had not to burst into tears. But she knew that inevitably the walls she was trying so desperately to enforce would eventually crumble.

She had spoken to the Alliance's provisional council about a rescue mission. The council had regretfully informed her that such a mission would be far too dangerous and would put all the Alliance at risk especially since they didn't know where Leia and Mara had been taken.

"I am truly sorry Padmé," Admiral Akbar, the Alliance's chief of armed forces and one of Padmé's closest friends, had told her as he laid a comforting flipper fingered hand upon her shoulder "But all we can do at this point is pray that the Force will be with them and bring them back safe," his gruff Mon Calamari tone was as understanding and sympathetic as that species could ever make their voices sound but still it did little to ease Padmé's tormented mind and aching heart.

There was a knock at the door of their room and Caden walked in "Luke's on the holocomm," he informed them.

Anakin leapt from the bed and with Padmé raced to the main room of the space that they and their children had been assigned. There in the corner stood a half sized hologram of their oldest son.

Padmé wished she could reach out and hug him but that was impossible. Thousands of kilometers separated them and if she were to hug the hologram it would only short out the image. "Luke," she breathed as she came to a stop mere inches from where the hologram stood, both she and Anakin trying to fit into the holographic transmitter area. This endeavor was made all the more difficult by Caden, Yurie and Zayn who each wanted a chance to say hello to their brother.

Luke waved at his siblings half heartedly before Anakin managed to shoo them aside. The three younger Skywalker children took up seats in the sitting area, leaning forward intent on the conversation between their older brother and their parents.

Padmé shook her head sadly "The council doesn't have the resources to launch a rescue mission," she informed her son.

"Galen and I are going after them," Luke sold her simply.

This declaration nearly stopped Padmé's heart in her chest. She was struck speechless. Anakin however was able to find his voice "Absolutely not Luke. I won't lose you to the Empire too."

Luke nodded somberly "You won't lose me," he assured "And you haven't lost Leia, not yet."

Padmé gave her husband a sidelong glance that seemed to convey that Luke was too much like his father. She looked back at the hologram of her eldest child. She didn't want him to go and risk getting captured or killed by the Empire but at the same time she knew that nothing she could say would stop him, that and she was terribly worried about her daughter and knew that if anyone could get Leia back it would be Luke. She remained silent, just staring at the young man that had once been her little boy.

Anakin sighed heavily "May the Force be with you," he said finally in quiet acceptance of his son's plan.

"I love you guys," Luke told them.

"We love you too," Padmé said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. She prayed that this wouldn't be the last time she saw Luke. "Come back safe…"

"We will," Luke promised. Then the hologram winked out of existence and Padmé collapsed into her husband's arms, not able to hold herself up under her own waning strength anymore.

XXX

"Expect a package from Leia," Luke murmured to himself as he paced the main living area of the dwelling "What kind of package?"

"What sort of package could she send?" Galen asked "If it were a data transmission the _Executor_ would have noticed it and we'd be besieged by Imperial stormtroopers by now."

"And Leia wouldn't give away our location even in the face of…" Luke trailed off. He wasn't willing to think about what might be happening to Leia and Mara at that moment. He had tried reaching out to them through the Force but that same Dark Side fog that he'd felt come down upon their presences the day before when he'd been looking up at the ship through his electro-binoculars was preventing him from doing little more than confirming that they were still alive. For the moment, that would have to be enough. But it wasn't.

Shmi entered the room and crossed quickly to where her grandson was pacing. She enveloped him in her arms and held him tight. She said nothing for a long time, just held her eldest grandchild in her arms as if he was her lifeline. Luke had told her about what had happened to Leia and Mara and Shmi was distressed to say the least. She remembered clearly the last time she'd seen her granddaughter.

The group of Jedi had dropped Luke and Galen off at the moisture farm. Leia and the red haired young woman, Mara had stayed for a few hours while Shmi and Beru fawned over the twins and Owen gave Galen and Luke a firm talking to, laying out the rules about the hard work that would be expected of them as long as they stayed at the farm.

Shmi remembered clearly how her grandson had placed his hand on the small of Mara's back as he showed her around the farm that he had visited several times before in his life but that she had never seen before. She also remembered the look in Luke's eyes as he watched his companion leave with Leia. She knew that look and she knew that in many ways, her grandson was falling apart now that both his sister and the girl he claimed was simply his best friend were in Imperial hands.

Owen and Beru entered the room. Beru was smiling broadly. She tilted her head in Luke's direction "You'll never guess what we found." Beru had accompanied Owen to Anchorhead to purchase the new droids. Considering recent events Beru would not have even considered asking her nephew to go. Now she stood in the entrance waving to someone behind her. "Come on in," she beckoned.

Luke and Galen's eyes widened as they saw a golden protocol droid and a silver and blue R2 unit entering. Luke couldn't hold in his excitement at seeing the droids and rushed to hug them both. He knew that they'd been on the ship with Leia and Mara and suddenly Mara's cryptic message about the package he was supposed to be expecting from Leia made perfect sense.

"Aunt Beru," Luke exclaimed as he turned and hugged his aunt "You are the greatest. Where did you ever find them?"

"The Jawas got to them," Owen grumbled "Better make sure their programming's intact."

Luke turned to his uncle and nodded before turning to Artoo. The astromech beeped and hummed a succession of unhappy noises. Threepio dutifully translated "Oh dear… Artoo says that while the data file that Mistress Leia entrusted him with has not suffered any damage and that his programming and circuits are fully functioning, the message that she entrusted to him with the instructions about what to do with the file is inaccessible to him."

Galen stepped forward "I know you're usually pretty handy with these things Luke but this might be a little more… delicate than the average repair."

Luke smirked at his friend "Are you suggesting that I'm not good with droid memory banks?"

"Well, why don't we go see Obi-Wan and ask him if he's managed to piece R4 back together after the last time you had a look inside him."

"That wasn't my fault," Luke objected.

Galen shrugged "Yeah, I know, I know," his voice took on a mocking tone "I swear it wasn't my fault. He must have wanted to blow up."

Galen broke into laughter that Luke didn't join. Shmi gave her grandson a sympathetic smile while Owen chuckled and Beru tried in vain to resist the urge to laugh. Luke groaned and turned to Artoo who was beeping again.

Threepio once again translated, a little more hesitantly this time "Artoo suggests that in light of the fact that he doesn't want to explode that perhaps we should visit Mistress Mina," Artoo continued to beep and Threepio became irate with his counterpart "Why couldn't I have said that in the first place?" he asked "You've made me sound rude. No I don't care if you wanted your opinion heard. No, I don't care about your opinion in the least you bucket of bolts-"

"Threepio," it was Owen who put a stop to the squabble before it got anymore out of hand "What did he say?"

Threepio turned dutifully to his human audience. When he spoke his tone was not free of the agitation he had had when addressing Artoo but it was far less pronounced "Artoo suggests that perhaps it is best that Mistress Mina and her father were also made privy to this information."

Luke sighed "Alright," he turned to his aunt and uncle "Uncle Owen, can I borrow the speeder?"

Owen shrugged "Just be back by dark," he sighed heavily, knowing that his nephew and Galen were more than capable of handling themselves against the sand people but he felt the need to mention it anyway.

"Mind if I hitch a ride into town?" Shmi asked her grandson "I have some shopping to do."

"Sure," Luke agreed and the group was off.

XXX

Leia had not seen Mara since they had been brought aboard the immense battlestation. It wasn't hard to figure out what had become of her though. Like Leia, Mara would be tortured for information but unlike Leia, Mara had the fortune to have not identified herself over an intercepted comm. transmission and did not possess the surname Skywalker. However, Mara had been in the possession of a lightsaber, the weapon of a Jedi warranted that she be confined according to special Force resistant protocols.

Leia worried about her friend. Her father and the other older Jedi had told her and the other children of their group about what the Emperor had commanded be done to Jedi. Leia feared for her friend's life and wished that she had developed her Force skills just a bit so that she could at least reach out to Mara to determine if she was even still alive. Leia hadn't had any time between when she'd sent the droids off and when she'd been captured by stormtroopers to speak to Mara. The last she had seen of her friend was a red head in a sea of white armor as they were brought aboard the _Executor_. The worry and tension was starting to get to Leia.

The door to her cell opened and Darth Tyranus's towering form filled the entry. Leia faced the black armored specter with all the insolence and bravado she could muster. She glared defiantly at him as he entered, an interrogation droid trailing behind him. He reached out and cupped her face "Skywalker," he said with disdain in his mechanical voice "My Master is very interested in your origins young lady."

Leia was about to reply when her self-confident exterior cracked. Something happened, something that had only happened once before in her life. The Force showed her an alternate reality. It wasn't much different than the moment she was living in at that moment but little things were different. And for that one moment she believed what was happening.

The first time it had happened she was with her mother, visiting Bail Organa and his adopted daughter Winter on Alderaan. While she and Winter had been playing together, the Force had shown her a different reality where she and not Winter was the Princess of Alderaan. That time it hadn't been such a shocking thing. It had been an interesting parallel reality and Leia hadn't told anyone about it other than Luke. The twins had been nine years old at the time and Luke was just starting to have some understanding of Force visions but her brother hadn't been able to give her any insight into what she'd experienced.

This time however, it was far more shocking and more than a bit terrifying. For the briefest of moments, though it seemed like a horrifying eternity, it wasn't Tyranus standing before her but her father. It was her father who had been mangled by a lightsaber duel and burned in lava and had been sealed away in that intimidating armor and he didn't recognize her as he stared down at her.

"Daddy…" she whispered as she shivered and looked away.

Tyranus misinterpreted her sudden change in demeanor and he moved aside to allow the interrogation droid to move closer. "Let's see what you know, shall we?"

**A/N: I'll try to update once a week. You may get a two chapter week and hopefully I won't go more than two weeks without an update. Please review and tell me what you think.**


	3. Chapter 3: Deceptions

**New Destiny: Rise of Hope**

**Chapter 3: Deceptions**

**A/N: Sorry it took me longer than I thought to update this. Thanksgiving and other things got in the way and delayed me just a bit. I'll attempt to make up for it by getting another chapter out soon. Thanks again to everyone for the reviews. Again, I've tried to correct as many errors as possible but I apologize for anything that slipped through.**

Mara's head felt fuzzy. She hadn't thought for a second that the feeling could be in anyway caused by her odd cell mate. A furry lizard of some type lay prone in some sort of cage that also seemed to serve as a complex system for nourishing the odd being. Mara of course had contemplated its presence but had come to the conclusion that it too was a prisoner. Considering the extreme xenophobia of the Empire, Mara believed that perhaps all sorts of alien species were held captive on this station alone.

She had attempted communicating with it verbally but if it was sentient it didn't understand Basic. Mara had then tried reaching out to it through the Force and that's when she'd become truly aware of the fuzziness in her head. She felt drained and wasn't completely sure why. In frustration she managed to haul her body up from the bunk above which the caged animal hung and crossed to the other side of the small cell. She had no idea what possessed her to do this but as she pressed her forehead against the cool durasteel of the wall the fuzziness in her brain began to lift.

She was suddenly aware again, aware of things she hadn't been aware of since she'd been left in this cell. And she became aware that most of the cell was a void in the Force. She turned and stepped back into the void and felt instantly empty and tired. She turned back towards the wall, pressing her forehead against it once more and the Force filled her up. After a moment or two of mapping out the void in her mind she realized that the strange creature was the cause. She walked back into the void and stood with one hand on the cage that the creature was suspended in. She took a deep breath, ignoring the empty feeling that the void gave her "What are you?" she asked quietly.

"It's an ysalamiri," a precise, clipped and obviously Imperial tone replied from the door of the cell. "It keeps your little Jedi powers in check" the sneer in the voice was unmistakable.

Mara spun to face a man dressed in the uniform of an Imperial General. She managed not to give into the instinct to step back from him and kept her face expressionless "And who are you?" she asked.

"General Cassio Tagge," he informed her, shoving her roughly in the direction of her bunk "And I've got some questions for you."

"Really?" Mara attempted to look surprised while shooting Tagge an arrogant smirk "And why hasn't the all powerful Lord Tyranus decided to grace me with his presence?" she looked up at the creature that hung above her "Could it be that he's afraid of this little thing?"

"He's busy getting answers out of your companion, the hard way," Tagge reveled in watching the smirk vanish from her face. "Now my young Jedi, how did you come into existence?" as he asked this an interrogation droid entered the cell and stood beside him.

XXX

"The plans for this battlestation have to make it to Bail Organa on Alderaan," the holographic message that Leia had left in Artoo's keeping informed them "He must be made aware of the situation. Don't go worrying Mom and Dad about it just yet, not until Bail has gotten a look at them."

Luke shared a look with Galen and Obi-Wan but before any of them could speak Leia continued.

"The ship we're on now, as well as the ship that managed to get its hands on these plans in the first place belong to Organa. If anyone's going to be in danger from this battlestation, it'll probably be him and other Alliance sympathizers on Alderaan. Hopefully, you can get there before anything happens."

Luke found himself unable to disagree with his sister's logic. He, Galen and Mina looked to Obi-Wan to see what he was thinking. They needed to look because in his mind the Jedi Master had erected shields to keep his daughter and apprentices out. They did not understand why. The three younger Jedi had never been shut out by Obi-Wan like this before, unless of course he and Siri had been sharing an intimate moment, but never in a time of such emotional strife had they not been able to seek the comforting thoughts of the sage old man to offer them solace.

The expression on his face was just as unreadable as Leia concluded the message with a farewell that nearly brought Luke to tears "I love you" she whispered "Tell Mom, Dad, Yurie and the boys that I love them too. Hopefully I'll get the chance to tell them that in person again someday."

Just as Leia was about to cut off the message another voice broke in and a new face appeared over Leia's shoulder. This newcomer also nearly broke Luke with her words. They were hard and to the point and just as he'd expect her to be "You'd better rescue us Farmboy" then Mara's face disappeared.

"Mara says hi," Leia added apologetically, always feeling as though she had to somehow cover for Mara's bluntness with her brother. Then the message was over.

As the image disappeared Galen laid his hand on Luke's shoulder "We'll find them," he assured his friend.

Obi-Wan stood up "But first we have to do as Leia said and take these plans to Alderaan," he stated simply.

Luke stared at his master. There was no doubt in his mind that what Obi-Wan had said was true and though it pained him to allow his sister and Mara to remain in Imperial hands, as a Jedi, duty came first, duty to the galaxy and right now the galaxy needed for Bail Organa to have those plans.

It would have been assuring to the young Jedi Knights assembled around Obi-Wan if he would have lowered his shields and at least allowed them a glimpse of his thoughts. But the Jedi Master remained tight as an airlock.

Mina, Galen and finally Luke rose to their feet "To Mos Eisley then," Mina declared.

"I have to bring grandma back to the moisture farm first," Luke shrugged.

"To Anchorhead to pick up Shmi then," Galen declared with a smirk.

XXX

Juno Eclipse was no longer able to accurately judge the passage of time. She could not be sure weather she'd been imprisoned aboard this station for several weeks or several months. Pain from multiple interrogations and a few unsanctioned beatings (at least she thought they were unsanctioned) left her unable to move so far as the small toilet in her cell. Consciousness was a fleeting thing and for that she was thankful. When she was conscious all there was to her existence was gray durasteel walls and a bunk on which she could not get comfortable.

But when she was unconscious she was happy, she was at piece, she could dream of him. Her Jedi. The compelling young man whom she had inadvertently rescued on Naboo. They had spent a total of one week together but it had been the most amazing week of Juno's life. The Jedi, who had introduced himself to her as Galen, had opened her eyes to things she'd never considered before.

When she'd first found out that he was a Jedi she'd flat out told him she was sorry that she'd rescued him from his crashed fighter. When he'd asked her why she'd responded that Jedi were cowards and murderers. When he'd adamantly argued that Jedi were just the opposite she'd nearly shot him. Admittedly the first day or so wasn't the among the high points of their time together.

She'd told him she was going to take him back to her CO. He'd asked her why and she'd said because his kind were dangerous. He'd proved her wrong in quick order. Eventually when the party of stormtroopers had come to recover her and the prisoner that she'd reported to have found, she'd allowed him to take her starfighter to escape. He'd wanted her to come with him but her TIE interceptor's limited air supply would barely support him and the lack of a hyperdrive meant that he would have to be very lucky. He'd assured her that there were Jedi techniques that could help him survive a bit longer than the air supply would allow.

She'd handed him her blaster and told him to shoot her. He'd refused at first but she argued that it would make it look like he'd overpowered her and stolen her fighter. He'd placed a stun bolt in her shoulder and as she lay about to lose consciousness on the grass, he'd kissed her. Then he was gone.

Her commanding officer hadn't been convinced by the scene that she and Galen had staged to make it look as though he had overpowered her and escaped. She'd been arrested and imprisoned almost before she'd fully regained consciousness. She'd been transferred to the enormous battlestation soon afterwards.

Juno heard the door to her cell slide open and was incredibly grateful when unconsciousness chose that moment to claim her again. She knew she would die in this place.

XXX

The already crowded speeder pulled into Anchorhead. The speeder's occupants quickly noticed Shmi and Beru's younger sister Dama waving frantically from behind the corner of a building. "Get over here," Shmi half whispered, half shouted to her grandson and his friends.

Galen pulled the speeder in behind the building. The vehicle had barely stopped when Luke jumped out, landing beside his grandmother. Luke could sense his grandmother's worry through the Force and he knew something was very wrong. He was about to speak when from behind him, Obi-Wan's voice broke the tense silence.

"What happened Shmi?" he asked quietly.

"Stormtroopers," Shmi told him, sounding a bit breathless "I've never seen so many in Anchorhead before."

"They were chasing after a Jawa sandcrawler on its way out," Dama explained "It looked like the group of Jawas that Owen normally does business with."

Luke's stomach knotted up "They're looking for the droids," his words barely had sunk in for the others before he was sprinting off, lightsaber in hand.

Galen ran to catch up with his friend "You don't think…?" he asked.

"Luke!" Obi-Wan called out as he simultaneously tried to hold back Mina, Shmi and Dama "Luke, Galen, it's too dangerous!" as he said this Shmi escaped his grasp and ran to catch up with her grandson.

Mina took the driver's seat in the speeder and waved to her father "We can at least offer Shmi a ride," she shrugged "There's no way she can run as fast as two Jedi Knights."

Obi-Wan sighed at in response to his daughter's remark and climbed in beside her. Dama hopped into the back with the two droids. When Obi-Wan turned to say something to her, the words died on his lips.

"I'm going," Dama said sharply.

XXX

Mara managed to haul her aching body to the one part of the cell where her connection to the Force was unhampered. She doubted that the Imperials were aware of the fact that the ysalamiri's void did not cover the entire cell or they would have done something to rectify the situation. She pulled herself to her feet in the small corner where she could reach out to the Force for guidance and strength.

She could feel Leia's presence close to her. She reached out with her mind to touch her friend's thoughts. Leia had been through severe interrogational treatments but Mara could tell that mentally Luke's twin was staying strong. Mara sent Leia a bit of encouragement through the Force and Leia replied in kind. Mara realized that it was Leia who was being the stronger of the two and that Mara herself was the one who was in real need of encouragement.

Mara stepped away from the wall and into the Force void again. She didn't like that she felt so helpless and drained in this void. She had gone the first ten years of her life without understanding her connection to the Force and without needing to rely on it at all at least not consciously.

Her parents had been smugglers. Her father Renner Jade was a Corellian who had worked in the shipyards orbiting his home planet for years until he'd been able to afford a ship of his own and he left the system in search of adventure. Her mother Fiona was a Chandrilan born slicer who had fallen in with a rather shady group of characters.

As Mara understood it her father had met Fiona in a cantina on Nar Shaddaa and became entangled in her mother's life. Mara's mother had substantial debts owed to some of the more powerful criminal organizations in Hutt Space. The two found that they had a talent for smuggling. They paid back Fiona's debts with ease and eventually threw in their lot with Booster Terrek. As a little girl Mara had been close friends with Booster's daughter Mirax. The two remained close even after Mara had been orphaned and taken in by the Jedi Remnant.

When Mara was ten standard years old the Galactic Empire staged a raid on Nar Shaddaa. Both her parents had been killed and she would have died as well had it not been for the intervention of the Jedi. Booster had been off planet at the start of the raid and had been able to get word to his long time friend Anakin Skywalker. Skywalker along with his former Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and two other Jedi had come to Nar Shaddaa to help evacuate as many of Booster's organization as they could.

Mara had been crouching beside the body of her family's loyal kath hound, staring up in fear at an Imperial stormtrooper who was pointing a blaster in her direction when the man was beheaded from behind by Skywalker. Mara hadn't given it a second thought when he'd extended his hand to her. She ran through the under city beside the Jedi and only just made it to the evacuation ship as it was taking off.

There had been many in Booster's organization, including Booster himself, who had offered to take her in but the Jedi had explained that Mara had great potential in the Force and had given her the choice of staying with the smuggling group or accompanying them and training to become a Jedi. She had decided to train with the Jedi Remnant. It was a decision that she'd never regretted even for a moment, not even now as she stood in the prison cell.

She stepped back to the wall and pressed her forehead against the cool durasteel with a contented sigh. She could feel Tyranus's presence somewhere in the station but he didn't seem to sense her and she did her best to keep it that way. She reached out beyond the station, searching for Luke or Galen, searching for her master: Luke's father. She found her master first. He was deep in meditation, attempting to reach out to her and to Leia.

_I'm here,_ she projected _We're both here. We're alive and safe for the moment._

She wasn't sure if he heard her but his presence seemed to become more aware and he snapped from his meditation almost immediately. Before Mara could continue she heard footsteps approaching her cell from outside and she returned to her bunk.

The footsteps passed and continued down the corridor. Mara was about to stand and return to the far side of the cell when an overwhelming feeling of weariness overcame her. She allowed her eyes to close, deciding that rest would do her good for when Tagge or one of his subordinates returned to continue questioning her.

XXX

Tyranus bowed and his hologram disappeared from view. The Emperor stalked towards his throne in a particularly foul mood. The presence of this Skywalker girl was distressing, quite distressing indeed. He'd thought the child had perished with in the womb with its mother and father many years ago. Now it appeared as though the child had survived.

Not only that but the presence of a Jedi who was obviously born after the purge indicated that somehow the teachings of the Jedi Order lived on. The Emperor scowled deeply as ripples of blue lightening crackled from his fingertips. Could he have allowed himself to be deceived all these years by Skywalker? He slammed a hand hard on the arm of his throne, summoning a contingent of his crimson guards "Have my personal shuttle prepared to launch!" he commanded one of them "And inform the servants at my residence on Naboo to prepare for my arrival!"

He would get to the bottom of this. And if it was true that Skywalker had deceived him all this time, Force help him and his family.


	4. Chapter 4: What We Believed

**New Destiny: Rise of Hope**

**Chapter 4: What We Believed**

**A/N: Hopefully this will make up for the Thanksgiving delay. This one's a bit longer too. I hope you enjoy and thanks once again to all of my wonderful reviewers.**

The large orange sphere of the gas giant Yavin hung in the sky of its fourth moon like a ripe fruit dangling from the end of an invisible tree branch. The wind blew loose strands of Anakin Skywalker's hair gently about his head as the sounds of the surrounding jungle filled his ears.

Anakin had come to the top of the Massassi temple to think and to meditate on what could be done now that Luke had resolved to go after Leia and Mara. Anakin reached into the Force, attempting to calm the worries that he was feeling. But the deeper into the Force he reached for reassurance the more he felt that something devastating was going to happen. He couldn't be sure what exactly was going to happen or to whom but the feeling persisted.

As he centered himself deep in the Force, Anakin felt the beginning of a though reach out to him. It was Mara. He attempted to concentrate on the thought that she was projecting but just at that moment an X-wing buzzed the temple, breaking his concentration. He looked up, an expression of aggravation on his face, to see Caden waving at him from behind the transparasteel of a fighter canopy. Further off in the sky were other snub fighters, practicing maneuvers. Caden had obviously strayed from his flight group.

Anakin heaved a heavy sigh and waved his son away dismissively, sending a current of irritation through the Force in Caden's direction. The Jedi Master rose and descended to the lower levels of the temple to find Padmé talking with Mon Mothma and General Dodonna.

Padmé forced a small smile when she saw Anakin approaching "I was just talking to the General about the possibility of sending some of our fighters to Tatooine to help Luke and Galen in their search for Mara and Leia."

General Dodonna cleared his throat "I'm sorry Padmé, Anakin," h nodded in the Jedi's direction "But half of our pilots are completely inexperienced and we can't spare them."

"I am truly sorry," Mon Mothma added, looking regretfully at her dear friends.

Anakin nodded understandingly as he took Padmé's hand and the two of them walked in the direction of their quarters "Where are Zayn and Yurie?" he inquired.

"Yurie's meditating in her room," Padmé explained "And Zayn…" she sighed "He's in the flight simulator."

"You can't protect him forever," Anakin managed a small smile at his wife. "I was piloting far less advanced things when I was younger than he is."

Padmé swatted her husband half playfully "He's not you Ani," she sighed "He's not you, he's not Luke and he's not Caden. He's not a Jedi and doesn't have the same instincts that you and his siblings do. Leia has more control over the Force now than Zayn ever will."

"There are loads of exceptional pilots who aren't Jedi," Anakin told her as they reached their quarters. "Just look at Biggs and Wedge."

"I know," Padmé dropped onto the sofa "But… he's my baby boy Ani…"

Anakin sat beside her and placed an arm about her shoulders "Our children have grown up too fast," he remarked with a sigh "I'll try to convince Zayn to put off his aspirations for a little while. But I don't see any harm in him training in the flight simulator. The experience can only help him."

"I don't want to lose another child," Padmé whispered, her voice thick with tears.

Anakin bent his head and kissed her "We haven't lost Leia," he assured her "Luke will find her and Mara, I know it."

XXX

The smoke was billowing from buildings that mere hours ago had stood sturdy and undamaged. The farm was in complete ruins. When Luke and Galen had found the destroyed sandcrawler it had only served to hasten them onward in hopes that perhaps they wouldn't be too late. Shmi had been picked up in the speeder by the others. Mina and Obi-Wan had stayed with the droids at the sandcrawler to bury the dead Jawas but despite Obi-Wan's insistence that Shmi and Dama do the same they had continued on in the speeder after Luke and Galen.

By the time the two young Jedi had reached the farm the stormtroopers were gone. Luke and Galen searched the remains of the burnt out buildings and finally came upon the remains of two people. They were burnt almost beyond recognition. Luke had hung his head as Galen began to search for tools so that they could give Owen and Beru a proper burial. Luke felt miserable. His aunt was a wonderful, kind and loving person who wouldn't harm so much as a sand flee. And his uncle while gruff at times was a decent man. Neither of them deserved this.

Luke snapped out of his silent misery and back to reality just in time to keep his grandmother and Dama from coming upon the remains. He pushed the two women back in the direction of the speeder.

"What is it Luke?" Shmi demanded "Where are they?"

"Please Grandma," Luke practically begged "Just get back in the speeder. You don't…" his voice cracked "You don't want to see them like this."

Dama broke away from Luke and within a few running steps had come upon what remained of her sister. Dama's head dropped and she shed only a few tears before Luke sensed a surge of anger from her. Dama's head snapped up and she spun on Luke "This is all your fault!" she screamed "You, your father, your precious rebellion! You did this!"

Shmi stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on Dama's shoulder "Dama, none of this is anyone's fault but the Empire's."

Dama would not be calmed "All your high and mighty Jedi talk! Where were you! Where were you when they needed you?"

"If Luke had been here chances are he would have been killed along with them," the group turned to see that Obi-Wan and Mina had arrived.

"Maybe that would have been best!" Dama shouted.

In a move that shocked everyone, Shmi slapped Dama hard across the face, nearly knocking her to the sand "How dare you!" she spat venomously "I mourn Owen and Beru's loss just as much as anyone but I will not stand here and have you say such things! I would not wish my grandson dead along with them or dead in their place! And you shouldn't either!"

Dama was about to retort when Obi-Wan stepped forward "I think it best if we leave. There's no telling whether the stormtroopers will return." The two women nodded and the group piled into the speeder.

The ride to Anchorhead to drop Dama off was silent. Not even normally chatty Threepio had any words to break the pawl that had settled over the group. When the speeder reached Anchorhead, Dama embarked. Just before the group sped away again she turned to Luke.

"I'm sorry," she said, offering him a pat on the shoulder "I know you would have saved them if you could have and I'm glad that the Imps didn't get you too," she offered him a wan little smile "Don't forget that you'll always have a family here on Tatooine with me. That goes for you're the rest of the Skywalker's too." She pulled Luke into a hug "I hope you find Leia and your friend. May the Force be with you," she gave him a kiss on the cheek and pulled away. She was gone before Luke could say anything in reply.

The journey to Mos Eisley was only slightly less awkward. There was some mumbled conversation between Mina, Galen and Obi-Wan. Artoo occasionally trilled a comment that Threepio either dutifully translated or became severely offended by, quite often it was the latter which would precipitate and argument that the humans in the speeder could understand only half of.

Luke was for the most part silent. His grandmother sat with an arm protectively around him and he allowed her to cling to him, knowing that she was in as much shock as any of them. He thought about how she'd asked to come with them when he and Galen had taken the droids to Obi-Wan and Mina. It was a stroke of luck that she hadn't been at the farm and been murdered as well.

They were on the ridge overlooking Mos Eisley when Luke finally broke his silence. He turned to his grandmother "What will you do now?" he asked.

"I don't know," she replied "I suppose I'll find someone to take me to Yavin so I can be with your parents. It's been too long since I've seen Yurie or Zayn."

Mina took the opportunity to speak up "I think we should split up" she told her father and the others "Shmi and I will go straight to Yavin while you take the droids to Alderaan."

Obi-Wan nodded "As soon as we reach Mos Eisley you take Shmi and find your ship. Luke, Galen, the droids and I will search the cantinas for passage to Alderaan." With a plan of action the speeder and its occupants began the descent from the crest of the ridge into Mos Eisley spaceport.

XXX

Sola Naberrie was restless. She had been told by one of her trusted friends in the Naboo underground that Palpatine was on his way. Her friend had not known what the Emperor's purpose was in visiting Naboo but Sola reasoned that it did not bode well for the underground.

Sola could at least breathe a sigh of relief that her eldest daughter Ryoo had left the system earlier that day with a group of transports bringing supplies and troops to Yavin. Her other daughter Pooja was still on Coruscant for the current session of the Imperial Senate. This fat gave Sola even more cause to worry. For one thing, Palpatine as the Emperor and Chief of the Imperial Senate should have been on Coruscant as well. It made it all the more unlikely that he was visiting his home planet out of some sudden burst of nostalgia.

Worse, if while Palpatine was on Naboo he might discover the Naberrie family's ties to the Alliance it would be far too easy for him to contact Coruscant and Pooja would be in custody long before anything could be done. Sola made quick work of sending a warning message to her daughter before she made her way to meet with Kylantha at the Palace in Theed.

Kylantha looked poised as always but somehow on this day she carried with her an air of worry that weighed heavily on her countenance. She waved Sola into a secret meeting room and bid her sit immediately.

"I suppose you know that the Emperor is on his way," Kylantha didn't waste any time getting to the point.

Sola nodded "Do you know the purpose of his visit?" she inquired.

"An agent of mine who has become particularly close to the Emperor was able to contact me," Kylantha informed her "He said that he heard the Emperor mention the name 'Skywalker'."

Sola froze "You don't think he's figured out the truth?"

"He may be coming to confirm his suspicions," Kylantha mused "And if he is able to confirm them…"

"He will instantly make the connection between the Naberrie family and the falsification of Padmé and Anakin's funeral," Sola finished.

"Naboo will become a very dangerous place for those who oppose the Empire," Kylantha remarked "No one involved will be able to escape the Emperor's wrath."

"What should we do?" Sola questioned.

"My private yacht can take us off system," Kylantha explained "If we leave now we should be able to be in hyperspace just as the Emperor is landing. We must be quick. I do not intend to suffer the same fate as my predecessor."

"Nor to I wish to be here when the Emperor comes looking for those who have deceived him," Sola nodded.

"Pack only the barest of essentials," Kylantha instructed "I will meet you at the Palace docking bays in half an hour."

Sola rushed to where her speeder was parked and pulled a satchel from beneath the seat. She'd been preparing for a quick departure from Naboo for some time now. In fact, she'd been prepared since the day that she and the rest of her family had staged Padmé and Anakin's funeral. She was at the docking bay long before the half hour deadline was passed.

Kylantha, her pilot and a dozen others were already there. Some of them carried satchels; other carried nothing at all with them. Sola recognized each of them. These were the some of the people most important to the survival of the Naboo resistance and the ones who would be in the most danger.

"The Emperor's ship has arrived in system," Kylantha's pilot, a man named Amno Grans, informed Sola "We should get going."

As the ship lifted off Sola took a last look at her home world through the viewport. The Emperor's personal ship was descending towards the planet below. She knew what he would find there and she knew that if indeed the truth about Anakin and Padmé's deaths was what he was seeking, his wrath would be great.

As Naboo shrank into the distance and just before the jump to hyperspace Sola blew a kiss to the distant world. Perhaps she would see it again one day. But it wouldn't be for quite some time. The ship jumped into hyperspace and the image of her beloved world was lost in a tableau of streaking white.

XXX

The mausoleum was still and silent as the lone figure moved through it. His guards had wanted to accompany him but he had left them to wait outside. He did not want to be disturbed. He was too angry to put up with his idiotic subordinates. He reached the crypt that he wanted. Inside lay a perfectly preserved couple. The technology to keep a body appearing in death as it had in life was pricy but of course the Naberrie family could afford it. These two were preserved just as other members of the influential family had been.

Beneath the transparasteel lay a beautiful woman clad in a blue gown, a japor snippet hanging around her neck. Her eyes were closed and her long brown hair was arranged so that it appeared that it was cascading down her shoulders. Her head was nestled against the chest of a young man. The blond young man was clad in the traditional robes of a Jedi.

One of his arms, the one that Palpatine knew to be artificial was half hidden beneath the woman. His real hand rested on the swell of the woman's abdomen, suggesting that along with them, their unborn child lay still curled within its mother's womb.

Strangely enough Palpatine found himself almost transfixed by the sight. Soon though he shook himself out of his reverie. He drew his lightsaber and plunged it into the transparasteel covering, breaking the seal. He cut the transparasteel away with ease and deactivated the blade. With his gnarled hands he tore away at the gown to reveal the swollen abdomen of Padmé Amidala. His hands met with what felt to him like flesh but somehow different. It tore away far too easily between his fingers and he cursed.

"Synth flesh!" it didn't take long for him to figure out that both bodies were simply synth flesh dummies. They looked identical to the real thing but were placed there to fool him and to protect the traitorous Anakin Skywalker and his bride.

Palpatine released a guttural scream of rage. The synth flesh dummies flew from the crypt and tore to pieces in mid air. Transparasteel shattered from other crypts and the deceased bodies of the other Naberrie family members began to join the dummies in circling the chamber. Dismembered arms, legs and heads flew in a tornado of carnage.

When the Emperor's crimson guard entered to check on their master's wellbeing they were assaulted by the human debris. The guards fled from the mausoleum in terror when they saw that it was their master who was the cause of the horrific display.

Palpatine threw his head back and continued to scream. He had been tricked! He had been fooled! He'd allowed himself to believe that Anakin was no longer a threat! He was furious. Someone would pay for this betrayal. He would make sure of it. There would be no escape. He would find and punish all who had a hand in this deception. He would make sure that when he found those responsible that their suffering would be unmatched.

After several minutes the screams died. The bodies and shattered transparasteel dropped to the floor and Palpatine exited the mausoleum to where his guards stood stone still in quite a bit of shock. "Contact Imperial Center!" he commanded gruffly "Have Pooja Naberrie arrested immediately and held until I can return and question her myself!"

The guards nodded and dispersed while Palpatine went in search of the other members of the Naberrie family and Queen Kylantha. He would question Kylantha and if she so much as hesitated for even a second, he would kill her.

XXX

On Coruscant, Senator Pooja Naberrie was long gone when a contingent of Imperial stormtroopers came to arrest her. Not only had the Senator made it off planet but so had all of her staff and they'd done a proper job of cleaning out any and all computer files and or hard copy flimsiplast that could be used against them as proof of their ties to the rebellion.

The stormtrooper in command of the unit felt a large lump settle in the pit of his stomach. The orders to arrest Senator Naberrie had come from the Emperor himself. There was going to be hell to pay for letting her escape.

**A/N: Next chapter is when a very important canon character FINALLY makes his appearance so stay tuned.**


	5. Chapter 5: Booking Passage

**New Destiny: Rise of Hope**

**Chapter 5: Booking Passage**

**A/N: Okay, these chapters are getting longer as I try to include more and more characters and attempt to inject a little humor and day to day type things into this story. Thanks again to everyone who is reading and reviewing. I'm glad that people are having as much fun reading this as I am writing it.**

"Uh-oh," Galen murmured under his breath as they reached the fringes of the city. His line of sight ran along a column of stormtroopers.

Obi-Wan turned to his daughter "Mina, you and Shmi should leave us here. It's the droids that the Empire's after. They won't be looking for an unassuming pair of travelers."

Mina nodded reluctantly. Before getting out of the speeder she leaned closer to Luke and Galen "Watch out for him," she whispered. She could tell that something was off with her father.

Obi-Wan chuckled and kissed his daughter's cheek "You worry too much," he told her. But there was a hint of something in his eyes that spoke of a deeper truth behind his words.

Mina and Shmi left the speeder and walked into Mos Eisley. The stormtroopers did not spare a second glance to the older woman and the younger woman, both dressed in sandy, weather worn clothing. The two passed into the city with no trouble.

"Now it's our turn," Obi-Wan mused as he nudged Galen "Start forward but go slow."

Galen nodded as Luke turned to Threepio and Artoo "Now, just stay quiet you two and let us do the talking."

"Yes Master Luke," Threepio replied dutifully "Oh dear…" he added in a distressed murmur as they approached the Imperial troops.

From inside the city limits Mina and Shmi watched anxiously as Obi-Wan, Luke and Galen bluffed and mind tricked their way passed the stormtroopers. Mina breathed a sigh of relief "Good thing that most stormtroopers are mindless drones," she let out a nervous burst of laughter before tugging on Shmi's arm "We'd better get a move on."

"Jedi mind tricks wear off though, don't they?" Shmi asked as they moved through the streets.

"Yes but hopefully they and the droids will have successfully lost themselves in the crowd like we're about to do," Mina replied.

XXX

"Padmé," Admiral Akbar sighed heavily as he waved his friend into his office within the Massassi temple. The room contained a desk, some chairs and several crates of food and medical supplies. It was just one of many rooms that served multiple purposes in the temple.

Padmé looked apologetically at her friend as she sat down.

Akbar took a seat across from her "I understand why you did what you did," he began, his gravelly voice as sympathetic as it could possibly be "But it doesn't make it right."

Padmé finally met her friend's eyes. She had attempted to circumvent Akbar's authority by going to Dodonna and Mothma. In the end the result had been the same but she had been desperate. "I'm not the only one who isn't being completely honest," she told her friend. Though she felt guilty over her actions, it didn't erase the fact that Akbar had been hiding something from her. Years in politics had taught her much about the beings of the galaxy and how to read them and she could read her friends easiest of all. "What haven't you been telling me?"

Akbar sighed and activated his commlink "You should probably come in now," he said into the device.

The door to the room slid up and in glided Princess Winter Organa. The way in which the princess with the stunning, flowing white hair carried herself was so poised, so regal that she could never be reconciled in Padmé's mind with the spy Targeter who had been so crucial to the Alliance on so many occasions though Padmé knew that they were in fact one and the same.

Winter's holographic and audiographic memory made her the perfect candidate for work in intelligence. Though she had originally been offered a place on the Alliance's ruling council Winter had argued that she would serve the Alliance much better as a covert agent. And so far none of the Alliance members had been disappointed with her performance.

Padmé smiled at the princess who had been a friend of her daughter's since childhood "Winter," Padmé rose from her seat and embraced the young woman.

Winter returned Padmé's embrace "We have much to discuss," she told her as the embrace broke apart. Padmé returned to her seat and Akbar pulled a chair out for Winter.

"I believe it is time that we allowed Councilor Skywalker in on what you've been able to discover," Akbar began.

Winter nodded and placed a datapad on the desk. She activated it and pulled up a file which she showed to Padmé "This is an initial report that I received from a group of Alliance members on a planet called Ralltiir."

Padmé shook her head sadly. She knew all too well of the fate of Ralltiir and its inhabitance. They had all been killed or arrested for treason. The fact that any information could have come from the planet surprised her.

"A small group were able to escape" Winter continued and Padmé was certain that Winter had something to do with this particular miracle "One of the survivors described in some detail a new super weapon that the Empire has been developing."

Padmé frowned, nodding in understanding of Winter's words "How much detail was this survivor able to give?" she asked.

"Only rumors," Winter told her "Project Death Star. Through some delicate manipulation, the details aren't important, a plan was put in place to obtain the technical readouts of the weapon. A small stealth craft was sent to attempt to retrieve them on the orders of my father. When last I heard from him there had not been word from the ship in over thirty six hours."

"Because of the threat this new Imperial weapon poses," Admiral Akbar took over where Winter left off "It is of the essence that we consolidate our power and keep the fleet close at hand in case we are called upon to use it."

Padmé nodded again "I understand," she said softly.

Winter rose, gave a bow of her head in first Akbar's and then Padmé's direction and departed. When they were alone again Akbar leaned forward "I didn't want to worry you about this weapon when the reports we had were only rumors and with Leia and Mara out in the greater galaxy attempting to gauge the allegiances of Imperial member worlds I thought it would only cause you undo anxiety."

"I think we've past the point of undo and reached the point of fully justified anxiety, don't you?" Padmé asked, shooting a nervous smile in her friend's direction.

Akbar gave a nervous chuckle "Quite right," he replied.

Padmé rose "I appreciate that you were trying to protect me but as I've told Anakin many times before I don't need to be treated like the slightest wind will knock me over. The next time something like this arises, even if it's just a rumor, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know."

Akbar stood and extended a flipper fingered hand in her direction "You have proved many times that you are more than capable of handling your emotions and I apologize for jumping to conclusions. Rest assured that any updates on our situation will be reported to you without delay."

Padmé smiled "Thank you," she turned and left the office.

XXX

"What are you two doing out by the speeder?" Mina asked as she and Shmi strolled by Threepio and Artoo on their way to Mina's blast boat.

"The owner of this establishment has a policy against serving droids," Threepio explained fretfully "Considering the circumstances under which we find ourselves here and the disreputable looking crowd inside the cantina, Artoo and I agreed with Master Luke that we did not want to draw any further attention to ourselves by starting a scene."

Mina nodded "That's quite wise," she agreed "But couldn't you find somewhere a little more inconspicuous to wait."

"I do suppose we could," Threepio remarked, looking around the area "It would be a good idea to have a contingency plan in place in case the stormtroopers come this way, don't you think so Artoo?"

The astromech twittered an affirmative reply.

"And if I might ask Mistress Mina," Threepio continued "Why is it that you have not departed yet?"

"We can afford to hang around for a while," Mina replied. She was really stalling hers and Shmi's departure in the event that her father and the others might require her help. Mina and Shmi passed the droids and pretended to do some window shopping at the nearby stores.

In the cantina Luke and Galen had become momentarily separated from Obi-Wan. It hadn't taken long for the two young Jedi to find trouble, rather for trouble to find them. A patron of the cantina obviously intoxicated took it upon himself to shove Luke. Though Galen was ready to come to his friend's defense Luke simply shrugged it off and took another serene sip of his drink.

Two other patrons, one of them a human male, soon joined in what they perceived to be a good time. The human indicated the alien who had initially shoved Luke "He doesn't like you," the man informed.

Luke had been able to gather that from the creature's irate presence in the Force but he attempted to keep as low a profile as possible "I'm sorry," he apologized needlessly to the group. Luke could sense that Galen wanted desperately to react to this bunch of thugs.

"I don't like you either," the human male continued. His intoxicated counterpart began shouting angrily.

"Listen here pal," Galen growled.

Luke held up a hand to silence his friend "Easy Galen, we don't want any trouble."

The man ignored them "You better watch yourselves boys," he chuckled "My buddy here and I, we're wanted me. I have the death sentence on twelve systems."

"We'll be careful," Luke assured the aggressors with a small little smile.

The man was getting far too fed up with the attitudes of the young men by this point. He grabbed Luke by the collar and shook him "You'll be dead!" he shouted.

Caught completely off guard Luke was unable to do much about the man hurling him across the room. He was able to lessen the damage to himself by pulling a current of Force around him. Though Luke was back on his feet in seconds he wasn't quick enough to stop what happened next.

Galen stepped forward and glowered at the human and his companions "That was uncalled for," he growled "We weren't causing any trouble."

"Well you've got trouble," the human said as he and his group advanced, drawing blasters.

At the bar the bartender was frantic "Hey, no blasters!"

With barely a flick of his wrist Galen had his lightsaber in his hand and activated in a guard position. With a quick motion he severed the weapons of his adversaries "Are we going to have any more problems?" he asked.

The aggressors murmured amongst one another before withdrawing. The atmosphere in the cantina returned to normal and Luke quickly dragged Galen to where Obi-Wan was conversing with a Wookiee. "That was sort of stupid bringing your lightsaber out in public," Luke reprimanded.

"It was that or get shot Luke," Galen replied with a shrug "You alright?"

"Fine, fine," Luke replied "Just got a little bumped is all."

"That's what you get for using the non violent response," Galen muttered.

"Yeah," Luke said sarcastically "Where as your way is gonna have the stormtroopers swarming this place."

"Stop arguing you two," Obi-Wan commanded as he motioned for them to take a seat beside him "This is Chewbacca. He's first mate on a ship that might suit us."

Chewbacca nodded vigorously before leaving the booth.

"Wait where's he going?" Galen asked curiously.

"To find his captain," Obi-Wan explained "So that we can begin negotiating our price."

It wasn't long before the Wookiee reappeared practically dragging the man who was apparently the captain that Obi-Wan had referred to. The man plopped into the booth with a nonchalant air and leaned back "Chewie tells me you're looking for a pilot."

"That's correct," Obi-Wan replied.

"Know where we can find one?" Galen tried not to laugh at the look that the man gave him.

"Hey, watch it Kid," the man told him.

Luke elbowed Galen in the ribs "You wanna be stuck here any longer than necessary?" he asked. He made a covert gesture towards the door of the cantina where a group of stormtroopers could be seen making their way up the other side of the street.

Galen put on his most apologetic smile "Sorry," he tried not to sound grudging.

The man chuckled with a note of good nature to his tone that seemed to contradict his gruff exterior. He extended a hand across the table "Han Solo, good to meet you."

"Is your ship fast?" Obi-Wan asked.

Han laughed again but this time with less good humor "Is she fast? The Falcon's the ship that made the Kessel run in under twelve parsecs."

Luke grinned madly. He knew of the infamous Kessel run. Many of the smugglers from Booster Terrek's group who often came to visit her talked about it with both fear and admiration in their voices. "You've got to be insane," he told Han "Skirting that close to the Maw's liable to get you killed."

Han returned Luke's manic grin "Security forces on your tale can make being compressed into a singularity seem quite appealing."

"I can imagine," Galen chuckled.

"So," Han crossed his arms before him on the table, leaning forward slightly "Down to business fellas. Where're you looking to go?"

"The Alderaan system," Obi-Wan replied.

Han considered this for a moment "And what's the cargo?"

"No cargo," Luke assured.

"Just the three of us and a couple of droids," Obi-Wan informed Han. The old man leaned in across the table "And no questions."

"No questions huh?" Han seemed to consider this for a longer moment "What exactly are you into?"

"Let's just say we'd like to avoid any Imperial entanglement," Galen said conspiratorially.

"Ah," Han exclaimed in realization "Now that's the trick isn't it" he grinned "Ten thousand."

Galen, Luke and Obi-Wan conferred for a moment before Obi-Wan faced Han again "We're in a bit of a hurry," he remarked "So we'll pay you two thousand up front and another fifteen thousand when we reach Alderaan."

Han's eyes seemed to light up at this but he quelled the reaction in an instant "Alright," he said calmly "The Millennium Falcon, docking bay ninety four. Give me a few minutes to take care of some things and I'll meet you there."

"Docking bay ninety four," Obi-Wan repeated as he nodded.

Chewbacca let out a low growl and Han turned to his first mate. After a brief exchange between the two Han looked to the front of the cantina "Looks like those bar scum you let live went and got some of that Imperial involvement you were so intent on avoiding."

Luke turned to Galen "I told you that you'd get us caught."

Obi-Wan held a finger to his lips "Not now," he chastised as he motioned to the backdoor of the cantina "Move." As he rose from the booth he turned to Han "We'll meet you at the docking bay Captain Solo."

"See ya there," Han nodded. Shortly after the three men had left the group of stormtroopers made their way to the rear entrance of the cantina as well.

Chewbacca growled worriedly.

"Don't worry Chewie," Han assured "Those guys look like they can take care of themselves. They must be in a real bind if they're willing to pay seventeen thousand though. Listen, why don't you get to the ship, get her ready to take off."

Chewbacca nodded and left. Once Han was alone he placed his feet up on the table and sighed. He'd be set after this run. Just a quick jaunt to Alderaan and then he'd have the money to repay Jabba the Hutt.

His reverie was interrupted by a familiar alien voice.

Han forced a smile "Just what I needed," he muttered as he stared at Greedo.

XXX

"Why haven't you left yet?" Luke asked Mina and his grandmother when the two groups ran into each other on the street.

"Well…" Mina trailed off.

"We want to make sure you're alright," Shmi explained.

"We'll be fine," Galen assured "We've got a fide. All we've got to do is sell the speeder to get some upfront money and we'll be off."

"See," Luke grinned at his grandmother "No need to worry about us," he gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek "Now get going you two."

Mina shrugged exasperatedly before giving her father a hug and leading Shmi towards the docking bays "We can take a hint boys," she laughed lightly.

XXX

Kento and Mallie Marek sat on a bench in the mess. Their fifteen year old daughter Urysia was busy on the other side of the room chatting animatedly with Zayn Skywalker.

"Now that those two are teenagers," Kento remarked "I'm get worried every time I see them together."

Mallie laughed and swatted her husband on the arm "Zayn is harmless," she reminded him "And Urysia isn't even interested in him that way."

"And I suppose you know this for a fact," Kento poked her in the ribs with a finger.

"Well, the Force tells me some things," Mallie told him "But most of my information comes from actually talking to our daughter. You know, talking."

Kento sighed "So is she interested in any– wait don't tell me I don't want to know."

Again Mallie laughed "Don't worry, I wouldn't tell you even if you did want to know."

"It's not Caden is it?" Kento asked, concerned.

"shut up," Mallie swatted his arm again "I told you I'm not telling you."

Kento threw his hands over his face "It is Caden isn't it? Oh Force no. I don't think I could bare my daughter dating Caden Skywalker."

"Breathe sweetheart," Mallie told him firmly.

"And if they got married," Kento continued to bemoan "Whether it was Caden or Zayn, Anakin and I would be," he gulped perhaps a bit more dramatically than was necessary "In-laws!"

Mallie sighed heavily "Kento sometimes…" she left the thought unfinished.

Kento turned to his wife, suddenly all seriousness "What is it?" he asked.

Mallie shook herself "Just a premonition," she replied "Not a defined one… It's passed now."

"Galen?" Kento asked.

"I don't think it had anything to do with him," Mallie assured "It was more a feeling that anything. A feeling that something very bad is about to happen."

"Anakin said he was feeling similarly," Kento remarked as he wrapped an arm around his wife and rubbed her shoulder, offering comfort.

Mallie sighed and leaned into her husband's embrace "I suppose it's to be expected with Mara and Leia being captured but somehow I don't feel like it has anything to do with Mara or Leia…"

Kento nodded, he had had flashes of things in his sleep that he could not remember when he awoke but that gave him the feeling that something life altering was about to take place.

XXX

Pooja's ship came out of hyperspace at the edge of the Ralltiir system. Since the Empire had lain waste to the planet not even the patrol ships that one might normally see in other systems frequented Ralltiir. It was here that she had told her mother and Kylantha that she would meet them.

Kylantha's yacht dropped out of hyperspace just off of Pooja's port bow. Pooja's pilot informed her that someone from Kylantha's ship was on the comm. Pooja was relieved to hear her mother's voice on the other end "Glad you made it," she said with a smile.

"Same to you," Sola replied, the smile evident in her voice as well "Was your exodus from Coruscant smooth?"

"Yes," Pooja replied "Thanks to your warning my staff and I were able to cover our tracks fairly well."

"That's very good," Sola told her. Sola's voice dropped in volume just a bit and Pooja could tell that her mother was trying to keep from crying "I'll see you in person as soon as we reach the Alliance base."

"Mom…?" Pooja asked "What is it?"

"It's nothing," Sola said quickly "Just happy that you're safe. I'm transmitting the coordinates to the base to you now." After the coordinates came through the comm. went down and Pooja watched Kylantha's ship jump into hyperspace once more. Pooja's ship soon entered hyperspace as well. Pooja settled down and pulled the crash webbing over herself, preparing for a long ride.


End file.
